One Place logo - AI-powered real estate search engine

Lease termination letter template for Iceland

Tenant's notice to end the leaseUppsögn leigjanda á húsaleigusamningi

The tenant's written notice that ends an open-ended residential lease. The notice period is 6 months for a flat and 3 months for a single room. It starts on the first day of the month after the notice is sent. A fixed-term lease ends on its date and can be ended early only on grounds written in it.

Use it when you rent a home under an open-ended lease and want to leave. A tenant may end an open-ended lease at any time. The landlord may do so only on the grounds in 55. gr. a of the act. Use the fixed-term alternative only if your fixed-term lease lists grounds for early termination and one of them applies. If you simply want to leave a fixed-term lease early, ask the landlord for a written agreement instead.

Reviewed October 28, 2026. Not legal advice. Have a notary or lawyer check your case before you sign.

Key facts

Applies to
Whole country
Flat, open-ended lease
6 months for both parties (húsaleigulög, 56. gr.).
Single room
3 months for both parties (56. gr.).
Start of the period
The first day of the month after the notice was sent (57. gr.).
Moving out
Vacate and clean by 13:00 on the day after the notice period ends (57. gr.).
Form
Written and sent in a provable way. Email or text counts if sent to the address or number in the lease (55. and 13. gr.).
Fixed-term lease
Ends on the agreed date. Early end only on lease grounds (3 months' notice), or as 37. gr. a, c and 50. gr. allow (58. gr.).
Staying on
If the tenant stays and pays for 8 weeks after the end without the landlord demanding departure, the lease becomes open-ended (59. gr.).
Landlord's notice
For leases made or renewed since 1 September 2024, only on the grounds in 55. gr. a, on the HMS form.
Business landlord's notice
12 months if the landlord is a legal entity that lets homes as a business and the tenancy is over 12 months (56. gr.).
Rent increase for costs
The tenant may end the lease within 30 days of a 37. gr. a demand instead of accepting it (leases made or renewed since 1 September 2024).
Landlord's damage claim
In writing within 4 weeks of the return of the home (64. gr.).

The document

Text shown

You sign the Icelandic version. The English version helps you understand it. Your answers fill both.

Tenant's notice to end the lease

  1. 1.Sender and recipient

    1. 1.1

      From: Tenant's full name, ID no. Tenant's kennitala. To: Landlord's name, Landlord's address, email or phone. Sent How the notice is sent on Date the notice is sent.

      Name every tenant in the lease. Keep the receipt or the sent email.

    2. 1.2

      Subject: Notice to end the lease.

  2. 2.Notice

    1. 2.1

      I hereby give notice to end the lease of the home at Address of the let home, property number Property number (fasteignanúmer), dated Date of the lease.

  3. 3.Notice period

    1. 3.1

      Optional

      The lease is open-ended. The notice period is six months, see article 56(1)(3) of the Tenancy Act no. 36/1994, and starts on First day of the notice period, the first day of the month after this notice is sent, see article 57 of the act. It ends on Last day of the notice period.

      Keep one of the notice clauses. For a single room the period is three months: change "sex" to "þrír" and cite 2. tölul.

    2. 3.2

      Optional

      The lease is for a fixed term. It provides that it may be terminated on the following ground, which now applies: Ground from the fixed-term lease. Under the lease and article 58 of the Tenancy Act, the notice period is at least three months and ends on Last day of the notice period.

      Use it only if your fixed-term lease lists the ground. Quote that clause. The notice must state the reason.

    3. 3.3

      Optional

      Reason for the notice: Reason for leaving.

      The act asks that a notice state its reason. The list of permitted grounds binds only the landlord, so a short reason is enough.

  4. 4.Return of the home and inspection

    1. 4.1

      I will return the home vacated and clean no later than 13:00 on the day after the notice period ends. I propose that the end-of-lease inspection and the return of the keys take place on Exit inspection and key return date.

      Either party may ask for an independent inspector, with the cost shared equally.

  5. 5.Security and new address

    1. 5.1

      My new address for notices is Tenant's new address. I ask that the deposit be refunded with interest to account no. Bank account for the deposit refund, see article 40 of the Tenancy Act.

      If the landlord makes no written claim within 4 weeks of the return of the home, the deposit must be returned with interest.

  6. 6.Spouse's consent

    1. 6.1

      Optional

      The undersigned, Tenant's spouse, name and kennitala, spouse of the tenant, consents to this notice, see article 60 of the Marriage Act no. 31/1993.

      Keep it when you are married, the home is the family residence and your spouse did not sign the lease.

  7. 7.Signature

    1. 7.1

      Yours faithfully, Tenant's full name.

      Each tenant who signed the lease signs the notice. An electronic signature is valid.

Formalities

  1. The notice is in writing and sent in a provable way.
  2. Provable ways: a registered letter, by hand against a dated receipt, or electronically to the phone number or email the lease gives for the landlord.
  3. A notice sent properly takes effect even if it arrives late or not at all.
  4. Each tenant who signed the lease should sign.
  5. If the home is the family residence and the lease is in one spouse's name, the other spouse must consent in writing.
  6. HMS publishes sample notices (húsaleigulög 4. gr.). A landlord's notice under 55. gr. a must use the HMS form.

Common mistakes

  • Counting the notice from the day you send it. It starts on the first day of the next month, so a notice sent on 2 March starts on 1 April.
  • Trying to end a fixed-term lease with a notice. It binds you to its end date unless it lists termination grounds.
  • Sending the notice to an email or number not given in the lease, or by a channel you cannot prove. Keep proof of sending.
  • Forgetting the spouse's written consent when the home is the family residence. Without it the notice can be challenged.
  • Moving out without a joint exit inspection. Ask for it in the notice, and get an independent inspector if you expect a dispute.
  • Not giving your new address. The landlord must tell you of any deposit claim within 4 weeks, and needs an address to do so.

Legal basis

Sources

Describe the home you want